culture
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Unique Views Podcast, Episode 19: Doug E. Fresh and Prince, BFFs
I never wanted to host a podcast. I also never wanted to host a podcast with my nemesis Danielle Young—aka Young Work Release, aka Ms. Patti Patti, aka The Root’s social-content producer—but God doesn’t care about my wants. As such, I have been blessed, but not with Ms. Patti Patti. She is my penance. I…
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Does Sage Steele Think All Lives Matter?
ESPN commentator Sage Steele has found herself in the middle of a Twitter fray since Tampa Bay Buccaneers wide receiver Mike Evans took a knee to protest Donald Trump’s presidential victory. Steele posted this: And all hell broke loose. Steele was accused of being everything but a child of god. Many saw her stance as…
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HTGAWM: ‘Mama, No!’ 5 Moments That Had Us Yelling at the TV
This week’s episode revealed who was under the sheet, and it had us screaming at our TV screens from start to finish. Here are the top five moments: There are many ways to kill someone: with words, with weapons or by begging him to kill himself when he is in a deranged state. With Frank…
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Soundtrack of the #Woke
As the country marches to the twilight of 2016, an already dreary year is hit with a storm that puts Hurricane Matthew to shame. The fog of discordant hatred ushered in by Donald Trump’s election to the presidency of the United States seems like an appropriate stamp on 11 months marred by unchecked police shootings…
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Empire Recap: A Hacker Exposes All the Cookies
There’s a high-tech whodunit at Empire Records, which forces the Lyon clan to air their dirty laundry in public in last night’s episode of Empire, “Chimes at Midnight.” It’s a fun episode; I’d grade it a B-plus, only because the previous episode climaxed with a violent family fight that was live-streamed on the jumbo screens…
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Watch: Melanin on Fleek at The Root 100
OK, so I’ll admit that maybe “on fleek” is over, but it just felt right describing a celebration of melanin in the room at The Root 100 Gala Monday night. So let me have this, OK? At this point, you may have seen the epic (read: turnt) party photos showing some of the brightest thought leaders…
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Queen Sugar Hits This Dad Right in the Feels
I love Queen Sugar. Let’s start there. I’d take Queen Sugar on a $200 date, juju on the beat with it, and cook greens, beans, tomatoes and potatoes just so it would have something to take home in case it got hungry. For those who aren’t familiar, the Ava DuVernay-helmed show is the story of…
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Why You Should Be Glad We’re Getting a 2nd Chance to Show Some Love to Daughters of the Dust
In the late ’80s, when filmmaker Julie Dash was raising money for her directorial debut, Daughters of the Dust, she met with resistance. “It’s been done,” people told her, citing the TV series Roots, the movie Sounder and even Gone With the Wind. Few of these potential funders recognized the breadth and originality of Dash’s…
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Insecure Highlights the Double Standard of Sexual Fluidity
Sunday night’s episode of Insecure had to be one of the best in the series so far. The HBO show does well painting a picture of what it means to be a modern-day single black woman dating in Los Angeles, while examining topics of racism, sexism and microaggressions not only in the dating scene but…
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The Root 100 2016 Gala Celebrated the Best in Black Art, Athletics, Activism and More
The Root celebrated the eighth year of The Root 100 list of influential African Americans, and the first gala with newly appointed Managing Editor Danielle Belton, on Monday in New York City at the swanky venue (that made every girl in the room want to host her wedding there) Guastavino’s. Belton says, “Though I’ve been…